Resaca de la Palma State Park

Have you ever been to a bona-fide birding center? Neither had we before Resaca de la Palma State Park. Over an extended weekend mid-June 2018, we headed to the border of Mexico to visit the three Texas State Parks nestled in the Lower Rio Grande Valley that are part of the World Birding Center network.

We were greeted by beautiful bird sounds at the gate. Well, that and…locusts?

From the moment we entered the park, we were greeted by bird song, a sound that became our soundtrack throughout our entire visit at RDLPSP along with what I think may have been locusts?

At the HQ, Ranger Kelly helped us plan the best hike for our visit, one that included her favorite spot in the park. We were excited to get started on the “main path” – which is actually a road for the park’s tram. You see, RDLPSP is fancy – they offer tram rides to drop your party off at the various trailheads stemming from the main road. Since we enjoy hiking and fancy ourselves sturdy people able to look the Texas summer heat in the face, we set out on foot with a plan to be picked up by the tram if the heat (or mosquitos) overwhelmed us on our visit. That was another way Ranger Kelly did us a solid. She forewarned us that the mosquitos were out in force that day and we should make sure that we not only sprayed ourselves before heading out, but that we took the spray with us “just in case we needed it” (along with more water than we thought we’d drink). Those of us with lady bits took her at her word and I’ll just say we weren’t itching for the next week like the other half of us.

The main path was actually a somewhat shaded road, which was an encouraging start to us on the hot day we visited. It made a loop around the park that was a little under 3 miles total.

For the most part, our walk through the park was uneventful. We saw some pretty scenery, heard some pretty birds, and enjoyed organic conversation about nothing in particular while the mosquitos feasted on the {unsprayed} menfolk and left us {sprayed} ladies alone. We passed trail after well-marked trail, mostly on the left side of the tram road, until we came to a big turn in the road where the Hunter’s Lane trail began. It was a short walk around a half mile until we came across this:

Soaking it all in (and enjoying blessed shade on this 100+ degree day) at Ranger Kelly’s favorite spot in the park.

The view behind you while you enjoy the respite from the heat in the shade on Ranger Kelly’s bench.

So, so beautiful. Quiet except for the serenade of the birds…and locusts.

By this time, it was early afternoon, super hot and we were enjoying the shade, the view, our waters, and that bench all in equal proportions. And it was also about this time that we decided a tram ride would rock our heat exhausted worlds, so we headed back to the tram road to call for a ride. And when I say we headed back, I mean we walked kind of slowly, trying to conserve our energy because we were beat down by the heat. Defeated. In need of a hero.

Like a modern-day knight on his trusty steed, James rolled to a quiet stop in his electric tram not ten minutes later, smiled at us, and inquired in what I may have interpreted in my heat exhausted state as something akin to the Lone Ranger’s voice, “Did someone call for a ride?” Oh, James! I think we all developed a mild crush on James that hot summer day when he rode into our lives in his electric white tram.

James gave us the best darn half-tour of the park as he drove us the rest of the loop to the HQ one could have ever imagined. He was dreamy! James was enthusiastic about his job, and his contagious love of his park permeated the blessed tram. James, we’ll always have Resaca, man.

Why We Love Resaca de la Palma State Park

Main Loop. I’m a sucker for a good loop and prefer it much more than a “there and back again” trail. The fact that all of the trailheads are off of a loop is magnificent to me. Just walking the Main Loop provides marvelous opportunity for some great encounters with some beautiful birds. Everything else is icing on the cake.
Hunter’s Lane. This is the only icing on the cake we had on our visit, but we recommend it as enthusiastically as Ranger Kelly. It’s peaceful, quiet (except for the birds and locusts), beautiful, somewhat shaded, wide, and completely pleasant.
Park Staff. I know we’ve said this before, but we sincerely didn’t come across even one person that seemed half-hearted at their job at RDLPSP. And they helped us devise a perfect plan for the amount of time we had for our visit. And it’s free with admission!
That Tram. First of all, hello, it’s a free service! Take them up on it. They will drop you off at trailheads or pick you up. Either way, plan to join James for a ride on his Tram. It’s cool in more ways than one on a hot summer day.

Must Do’s

Hunter’s Lane Bench. Go back and look at the photos. You can easily see why that is Ranger Kelly’s favorite spot in the park. And now it’s ours, too. Thanks, Ranger Kelly, for the heads up. We loved it.
Tram Ride. If you’re a beast, go ahead and walk on the Tram Road and all the trails. Prove whatever you’ve got to prove, if you must, but having already gone that route, we recommend the Tram. Save your energy for the trails. Don’t waste it on the Tram Road. Let James chauffeur you to your adventure at RDLPSP in style.
Explore. There are a whopping 13 self-guided trails within the park. In addition, the park lists 4 suggested hikes ranging from 2 hours (2 mi.) to all day (11+ mi.) on their Trails Map. Or you can do what we did and ask Ranger Kelly to help you plan your own adventure. Make sure to take a trail map with you – just in case you decide a Tram Ride is for you, after all. You know, because of the heat. James’ number is listed on the Trail Map.

We’d love to hear about your experiences at Resaca de la Palma State Park! Please share your thoughts on this border birding haven in the comments.

*In all natural areas, you are a guest. Educate yourself on what lives in the areas before your visits, always talk to the Park Rangers upon arrival and take precautions so that your experiences end as positively as ours.

June 21, 2018June 19, 2018

Lyndon B. Johnson State Park & Historic Site

I’m pretty sure historic sites are more my thing than The Manling’s thing, which is why I was stoked when we pointed the Tiny Toyota Tardis (because the Yaris is bigger on the inside) in the direction of Lyndon B. Johnson State Park & Historic Site in early June 2018. As The Manling slept, I drove past such cool places as Fredericksburg, Texas (mental note, take Kinder Frau to Fredericksburg, Texas while she is still studying German!), and a really cool-looking vineyard that looked plucked out of Europe and relocated in the Texas Hill Country.

We arrived about 4:15pm and stopped to take our selfies at the entrance (glam photo below) before proceeding to the HQ. By the time we made it into the HQ, it was around 4:30pm at which time we sadly discovered that the buildings all closed at 5pm. Deflated, we asked the staff what we COULD see that would still be opened and they helped us plan a quickie hike that took us to the Living History Farm (which we could only see from the fence) and to the pen of a couple of farm animals we didn’t get to see (Both were a no-show reminiscent of the T-Rex exhibit in Jurassic Park.).

We hiked the trails around the Living History Farm in a half-hearted attempt to salvage a ill-timed visit and left with our heads hanging around 5:15pm.

What We Loved About Lyndon B. Johnson State Park & Historic Site

Trails. They were wide and included shade in parts. There were also interpretive signs on the trails we followed, which helped us learn a couple of new things.
(I dearly wish I could write more, but we didn’t get to truly experience LBJSP&HS. This is going to be a definite revisit when we take the German-studying Kinder Frau to Fredericksburg later this year.)

Must-Do’s

Check Hours of Operation. In my enthusiasm to visit LBJSP&HS, I was negligent to check and we suffered a crushing blow during our visit because of it. Always, always, always check the Hours of Operation before your visits. Lesson learned.
I’ve got to figure out how to up my selfie game.

Fascinating, right?! I had no idea and we had been spotting deer all over the Hill Country.

My newly minted Manling. I love this kid.

I’m truly thankful we didn’t run across this guy on our brief hike.

We’d love to hear about your experiences at Lyndon B. Johnson State Park & Historic Site! Please share your thoughts on this historic state park in the comments.

*In all natural areas, you are a guest. Educate yourself on what lives in the areas before your visits, always talk to the Park Rangers upon arrival and take precautions so that your experiences end as positively as ours.

June 18, 2018August 30, 2018

South Llano River State Park

South Llano River State Park was a last minute adventure in early June 2018. We had originally planned to visit Enchanted Rock State Natural Area that day, but a strong storm had blown through the night before and lingered into the morning, deciding for us that it was a visit best saved for another day. Who wants to spend half the morning trudging through muddy trails to then climb up wet granite, AmIRight? Undeterred by the weather, we set out for a completely different adventure at SLRSP.

Rabbit Trail #1

I want to point out how utterly fantastic two apps are for exploring our excellent State Parks in Texas: 1) the Texas Parks & Wildlife app; and 2) my iPhone’s map app. When Enchanted Rock was off the table, all I had to do was open the Texas Parks & Wildlife app to see what was nearby (for us, that means within a 2 hour drive), press a couple of screens and there appeared step-by-step driving directions to our next adventure! Easy-breezy!

We caffeinated up on that wet morning and set out for South Llano River State Park, looking forward to getting in some hiking before the oppressive Texas heat set in for the day. While The Manling slept, I drove down beautiful Hill Country roads, blissfully alone in my thoughts. (Extroverts might not understand the bliss of aloneness. It’s maybe an Introverted thing? Move on.) The caffeine hit, not hard at first, but as I drove mile after mile after mile down the aforementioned beautiful Hill Country roads, my bladder began a slow panic as there were no public facilities in sight. An hour later, when we finally reentered civilization (meaning there was a McDonald’s), I made a beeline for the Golden Arches. Being an uber responsible grown up, I unplugged my phone (and only means of navigation), grabbed my purse, and hastily made my way to the ladies room, conveniently located halfway between McD’s and the gas station adjoined to it. “Relieved,” The Manling and I headed back to the car. We decided he would do some of the driving, since I thought we were close to our destination, while I navigated. He got onto the road heading in the direction we were going before our bio break, nearing the huge intersection at which I thought we might change roads…and I could not get either of my apps to load. We decided to go old school and pulled into a gas station to ask directions from an actual person. Which mortified my introverted Manling. And then, because I wasn’t sure I believed him, I asked directions from another actual person.

Rabbit Trail #2

When traveling on the beautiful back roads of Texas, have old school means of navigation as back up to your fancy pants apps because…

A great many of the state parks are in remote areas without trusty cell phone towers.
Beautiful back roads in Texas are fantastically twisty and turny and the odds of you being able to wing it to where you’re going (or back home) aren’t in your favor, friend.

We arrived at South Llano River State Park a few minutes later basically because locals rock. They know where the stuff in their town is located. They’re friendly and don’t seem to mind helping strangers with silly things like landmark-laden directions (ie turn right at the only stop light down the road a-ways). And they aren’t out to get you (unlike the pesky rattlesnakes in my imagination!). Trust them. They {likely} won’t steer you wrong.

Back to SLRSP – The Manling and I are of the opinion that South Llano River State Park has the quaintest, most welcoming HQ in the entire world, hands down. We haven’t visited all of the HQ’s in the entire world yet, but our opinion still stands. God bless my old iPhone, but the pics (below) just don’t do it justice. We thought it was some incredibly hospitable person’s home. There is a long porch shaded by a huge shade tree, a porch swing, wood chairs and a handful of hummingbird feeders being used by dozens of tiny hummingbirds. It’s completely and utterly delightful!

I spy with my little eye…a wee hummingbird! Can you see him?

After mapping a good plan with the Park Ranger for a hike that yielded the least chance of seeing rattlers with the best views in the park that also would include multiple opportunities for fishing and enjoying “safe” nature interaction (song birds and scaredy-cat deer), we headed toward the River Trail/Buck Lake Trail parking lot. We slathered sunscreen, packed water and fishing gear and headed to the trailhead. I won’t bore you with all the details of our adventure, but I will say this – We plan on returning to SLRSP this year! We absolutely fell in love with a place we didn’t intend to visit and had, frankly, never heard of before. Life sure can surprise you in wonderful ways, which directly ties in with…

Rabbit Trail #3

We saw no snakes! There was a bit of a scare involving a tree limb that blocked our wide path (and extended into the grass on either side of the trail by several feet) and whether or not we would have to turn around and walk all the way back around the way we came because the helpful park staff said if we just didn’t get off the trails into the grass OR climb onto any fallen trees there was no reason to think we’d have a negative encounter with any snakes and then my manling reasoned me into doing those things because The car is right there, Mom. and so I caved under the pressure of wanting to be cool only to have him stop in the tall grass to turn and ask me if I just wanted to go back at which point I raised my Mommy voice and ordered him to KEEP GOING!, which he did, and once we got back on the wide path I may have cried, which might have exasperated The Manling, but I gotta let it out, man, so deal.

Why We Love South Llano River State Park

Headquarters. You may already have heard this, but the HQ at this state park is perfectly precious! You’ve got to experience it in person. The staff add to the warm, hospitable feel of the place and there is an overall vibe of “coming home” after a long journey at the park’s HQ.
Buck Lake. It is nestled beside the river and actually not a long walk from the campsites, but it feels completely isolated. There are benches and a huge picnic table available, 95% of the area is shaded, song birds serenade you, deer graze in the nearby brush and the vast majority of the area is mowed & explorable even by my city girl standards. We spent a couple of glorious hours fishing, reading, exploring and enjoying the sights and sounds of this tamed area of the park. Love.
Wide Trails. They have trails wide enough for a car. And they are flat, mostly shaded trails. Sure, you have to dodge the ginormous ants (remember the Indiana Jones movie?), but with wide trails, that’s easily accomplished.
Camping. A family we met that was enjoying the water at the spillway keep coming back to SLRSP year after year to camp and for good reason. Some of the campsites were completely shaded and private, others were more open, so there is literally something for everyone. And the park is large enough that you could spend days exploring and experiencing it. We definitely plan to return when the weather cools so that we can tent camp in the quiet beauty of this park.
Unplug. SLRSP offers you a genuine chance to unplug from technology and reconnect with your friends and family. Legitimately. Because there is absolutely no cell service. Anywhere. I promise. This. Is. Good. Trust me, you’ll leave thankful. (You will have to retrace your steps to that McDonald’s in town, hop on their WiFi, and download directions if you don’t have an old school paper map like this one that we bought the day after we got home from this trip.)

Must Do’s

Hike Buck Lake Trail & the River Trail. Carry water. Watch for ants. Enjoy nature’s soundtrack compliments of the river and the birds.
Fish at Buck Lake. There is shaded shoreline fishing and there is a pontoon-type pier across from the giant picnic table.
Cool off. There is a swim area proper and there is also a shallow area near the spillway as the water widens into the river that a family was enjoying while we were there. (No lifeguards on duty at either.)
Try your hand at birding. Ever seen or heard a Summer Tanager? You will at SLRSP because their little red bodies are everywhere adding color and beauty to your park experience. There are resources and staff in the quaint HQ that can help you identify all of the bird(s) that contributed to your South Llano River State Park soundtrack. Use them.
Talk to the Park Rangers. I know I have said this before, but these folks know and love their park. And they sincerely want you to have a positive experience!

We’d love to hear about your experiences at South Llano River State Park! Please share your thoughts on this precious park with the quaintest HQ in the world in the comments.

*In all natural areas, you are a guest. Educate yourself on what lives in the areas before your visits, always talk to the Park Rangers upon arrival and take precautions so that your experiences end as positively as ours.

June 14, 2018August 30, 2018

Colorado Bend State Park

The Manling has been looking forward to visiting Colorado Bend State Park for years! We finally made this trip a reality when we visited in early June 2018. I must confess that I was taken aback when we arrived and were greeted by the friendly park ranger at the self-pay entrance. When I inquired of said ranger if snakes really were in the park, I was told in no uncertain terms that they were. (I credit him for his sobering honesty in the face of my fearful, well…face.)

With the park trail map in hand (complete with a huge rattlesnake as clip art), we set out on the sarcastically long, slow drive from the entrance to the HQ, which is located at the river end of the park. During that long drive, my blood pressure rose, my breathing became more labored and I had all but talked myself out of getting out of the car, much less hiking to see the famed Gorman Falls, a 2.5-3 hour hike that is suppose to be well worth it. I prayed for the courage not to disappoint The Manling as we entered the HQ (which could accurately be described as a tiny house, if it were larger). As we headed back to the car, I saw a Honda Pilot full of what looked to be adventuresome 20-somethings getting their water and applying sunscreen. “Excuse me,” I ventured. As they turned to look at me, I continued, “Are you by any chance going to hike to Gorman Falls right now?” When they replied that they were, I quickly asked, “Would you mind if my son and I tagged along with your group?” Relieved that they accepted us as add-ons to their adventure, we headed to the trailhead to Gorman Falls, unfortunately located back at the entrance to the park. As we set out on the unbelievably long, slow drive back to the entrance, I was relieved we had a bona-fide group with which to hike. Again, I prayed for courage – and I had time to because the drive was so long – and when we finally arrived at the trailhead, I found that I had the courage to get out of the car. And then to make small talk with our “new friends.” And then to make our way toward the other end of the parking lot, where we met a couple that was returning from their own adventure.

“How was it?” I asked. It was fantastic, they said. Cool. I think I may have even smiled.

“Did you see any wildlife?” I ventured. “Any snakes?”

Oh yeah! they answered enthusiastically. We saw a rattlesnake and a skunk on the trail.

My new friends, eager for the fun to begin, gave nods of approval and headed onto the trail with a wave. I saw my opportunity to face my biggest fear (and impress The Manling with my stout courage) literally walking away and before I knew it, I had caught up and was officially on one of the scariest hikes of my life.

I say one of the scariest hikes of my life because I just knew it was infested with rattlesnakes. That is the park’s chosen clip art for their trails map, after all! I was certain the rattlesnakes were scheming some kind of elaborate assault at some point during the 2.5 hours we were in that feral wilderness. And it would be one of my two calves (out of the 16 available in our hiking party) that would be targeted.

When we made it to Gorman Falls unmolested by the rattlers, I was very happily surprised. And diverted. It is breathtaking! It honestly looks like a tropical rainforest plopped into the rocky dirt that is the predominant geological feature of the Hill Country as far as I can tell. We explored a little, took photos, got our feet wet in the Colorado River (see photo) and cooled off in the shade for probably half an hour.

When we headed back up the steep ascent to the trail, we actually ran into that same ranger from the entrance. Remembering us, he asked if we’d seen any rattlesnakes. “No, thankfully,” I answered. Our group chatted a short while with him before finishing the last leg of a gloriously uneventful hiking experience (read that as we neither saw nor heard a single rattler).

Why We Love Colorado Bend State Park

Gorman Falls. I don’t know if it was the sense of accomplishment or relief in finally making it to the falls, but this was by far the very best part of our time at CBSP. It is beautiful. It is a blessed respite from the summer heat in Texas. It is a refreshing oasis in the desert. And while all my talk of rattlesnakes may give you pause to reconsider, I encourage you to allow yourself this amazing adventure. After all, my imagination was the only thing that actually scared me.*
Water. The park is located on the Colorado River, contains a beautiful lush waterfall, and boasts natural springs, all of which serve to help cool off in the heat of the day. Perfection.

Must Do’s

Spicewood Springs. Waterholes in Texas in the summer heat. Priceless. (Full disclosure, by the time we were ready for this part of our park adventure, we were suffering from the over 100* heat and decided we would save it for next time. BUT…I think every person we met highly recommended them, so hydrate and make the hike to Spicewood Springs. I’m told it’s way easier than other hikes in the park.)
Gorman Falls. I am so glad I didn’t let my fear make me miss experiencing Gorman Falls. Do what you’ve gotta do (buy snake boots, tag-along with a group, suck it up, whatever), but don’t leave CBSP without seeing Gorman Falls in person.

We’d love to hear about your experiences at Colorado Bend State Park! Please share your thoughts on this untamed and untainted park in the comments.

*In all natural areas, you are a guest. Educate yourself on what lives in the areas before your visits, always talk to the Park Rangers upon arrival and take precautions so that your experiences end as positively as ours.